FReeper Canteen ~ Sunday Chapel ~ HIGH FLIGHT ~ 28 February 2021

Serving The Best Troops and Veterans In The World !! | The Canteen Crew

[Kathy in Alaska]

 

 

 

HIGH FLIGHT

John Gillespie Magee, Jr. was a pilot with the Royal Canadian Air Force. Shortly before his plane was shot down during World War II, he wrote a poem called "High Flight." The last stanza reads:

Up, up the long delirious, burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace,
Where never lark, or even eagle, flew;
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.

John Magee was only nineteen years old when he wrote these words. Today this poem is held sacred by pilots throughout the world.

The first time I heard this verse was in April on an early morning, meditation TV program, one of those which starts the day. As the words were read, the film showed a solitary jet plane soaring straight up as if to the heavens, straining to reach its limits, then twirling and moving in the air with a sense of graceful dignity. Somehow a true sense of awe was communicated, and I have ever since felt that when reading this stanza.

It speaks to me of a sense of freedom and grace, of reaching beyond one's limits, as if beyond oneself, conveying a sense of unity with God and nature. There are several phrases in the poem which I like to reflect upon. One of these is "silent, lifting mind," which is a goal I have in prayer - to have a silent, lifting mind unto God.

John Magee ends this verse with words which express a heightened spiritual awareness: "... and while with silent, lifting mind I've trod the high, untrespassed sanctity of space, put out my hand and touched the face of God." That, my friends, is called a "holy moment," a moment when you experience a deep, personal encounter with God, when you and your God are one. Rabbi Abraham Heschel, a leading Jewish theologian, says there are three things needed for a holy moment to occur: "God, a soul and a moment, and the three things are always here," he assures us. Three things: God, a soul and a moment. What you and I must do is be open to that God and live as if we were a soul, a sacred whole being ... and then cherish moments, one at a time. For John Gillespie Magee, Jr. the feelings he had when flying were cherished, sacred moments. This is a "felt" experience, which is hard to describe in words.

Based on what could have been seen as routine ops for a pilot, this 19 year old wrote a poem which long outlived his brief life, a poem which has since become inspiration to millions for its depth and poetic beauty. I suggest such is not only possible for you but exists each day in your daily routine, that is, if you open your heart and mind to seeing and experiencing sacred moments as did John Magee.

For me, John Magee is a champion, not only because he died a hero's death in WW II, but because he saw beyond the "here and the now" and the superficial frustrations of everyday life, to that which is greater and beyond us all.

CAPT Jane F. Vieira, CHC, USN

 

[lightman]

Keep the Lord’s Day in the Lord’s way.

A blessed Second Sunday in Lent (Western)/Sunday of the Prodigal Son (Orthodox) to all!

[immadashell]

Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth...

[lightman]

https://antiochian.org/regulararticle/244

[beancounter13]

And not even a single mention of how Ronald Reagan brought international attention to this last stanza when speaking about the bravery of the Challenger 7.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Please join us for Sunday Chapel ~ HIGH FLIGHT, and Liberty

Lt. Charles F. Suver, CHC, USN, 28th Marine Regiment, 5th Marine Division
"Mass at Iwo Jima"

Please stop in and say a prayer of protection for the military.
Prayers from all denominations are needed.




Sunday Liberty starts after the Guest Military Chaplain's Service!

[deoetdoctrinae]

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[ZOOKER]

Local TV station used to sign off with a reading of this poem, with stock footage of an Air Force pilot flying his jet fighter.

I never shut off the TV until it was finished.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Welcome to the Canteen, beancounter13, and a Blessed Lord’s Day to you and yours.

Ronald Reagan’s Challenger Speech...1/28/86

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qa7icmqgsow

[deoetdoctrinae]

High Flight TV sign off, 1960s

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good evening, lightman, and a Blessed Lord’s Day and a Blessed Second Sunday in Lent (Western)/Sunday of the Prodigal Son (Orthodox) to you and yours.

[The Mayor]

Freep mail me to be on or off the Daily Bread ping list

February 28

New Every Morning

Bible in a Year:

• Numbers 20–22
• Mark 7:1–13

[God’s] compassions never fail. They are new every morning.

Lamentations 3:22–23

My brother Paul grew up battling severe epilepsy, and when he entered his teenage years it became even worse. Nighttime was excruciating for him and my parents, as he’d experience continuous seizures for often more than six hours at a time. Doctors couldn’t find a treatment that would alleviate the symptoms while also keeping him conscious for at least part of the day. My parents cried out in prayer: “God, oh God, help us!”

Although their emotions were battered and their bodies exhausted, Paul and my parents received enough strength from God for each new day. In addition, my parents found comfort in the words of the Bible, including the book of Lamentations. Here Jeremiah voiced his grief over the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians, remembering “the bitterness and the gall” (3:19). Yet Jeremiah didn’t lose hope. He called to mind the mercies of God, that His compassions “are new every morning” (v. 23). So too did my parents.

Whatever you’re facing, know that God is faithful every morning. He renews our strength day by day and gives us hope. And sometimes, as with my family, He brings relief. After several years, a new medication became available that stopped Paul’s continuous nighttime seizures, giving my family restorative sleep and hope for the future.

When our souls are downcast within us (v. 20), may we call to mind the promises of God that His mercies are new every morning.

Reflect & Pray

How has God sustained you through the trials you’ve faced? How could you support someone who’s enduring a challenging time?

God, Your love will never leave me. When I feel spent and without hope, remind me of Your mercies and compassion.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Hello Veterans, wherever you are!!

A Blessed Lord's Day and Shavua Tov to you.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Shavua Tov.
Wishing all our Jewish troops, veterans, families, allies, friends, and Canteeners
a peaceful and prosperous week.

[DuncanWaring]

I once encountered a variation on this ...

---

“I’ve blown the burners out again
And danced the skies on g-load-wrinkled wings ...

(and a bunch of stuff I don’t remember) ...

And put out my hand
And wiped off the instruments”.

---

Anyone else recall ever seeing this variant?

[Kathy in Alaska]

Prayers for our troops, veterans, families, allies, friends, and Canteeners
for a safe and peaceful week ahead.

[Kathy in Alaska]

He Who blessed our forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob - may He bless the fighters of the Israel Defense Force, who stand guard over our land and the cities of our G-d from the border of the Lebanon to the desert of Egypt, and from the Great Sea unto the approach of the Aravah, on the land, in the air, and on the sea.

May HASHEM cause the enemies who rise up against us to be struck down before them. May the Holy One, Blessed is He, preserve and rescue our fighting men from every trouble and distress and from every plague and illness, and may He send blessing and success in their every endeavor.

May He lead our enemies under their sway and may He grant them salvation and crown them with victory. And may there be fulfilled for them the verse: For it is Hashem, your G-d, Who goes with you to battle your enemies for you to save you.

G-d bless and keep your children safe, Alouette.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Welcome to the Canteen, immadashell, and a Blessed Lord’s Day to you and yours.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good evening, Mayor, and thank you for today’s sustenance for body and soul.

A Blessed Lord’s Day to you and yours.

Did you practice resting today? Ya know, practice makes perfect. LOL!

[real saxophonist]

Ultravox - Reap The Wild Wind (Official Music Video)